I'll Cast All My Cares Upon You

I’m at a point in my life where I don’t know exactly what the Lord wants with me. I have so many options in front of me. I haven’t been the best at reading my scriptures or saying my personal prayers on a regular basis so I have a new plan of scripture study. Last week was ward conference and the week before, we were challenged to read Moroni 10 every night. I didn’t read it every night, but I read it a couple of times. Then during combined relief society and priesthood, we shared our treasures that we had found in our studies. It was a really cool experience. As I’m up here at the cabin, I’ve been reading my scriptures a bit and sitting and pondering and an idea that President Lee shared with us popped into my head. The quote is “Studying a segment of the scriptures for an extended period of time is like attending the temple, where we study the doctrines of the temple over and over, for the rest of our lives.” The last couple of days I have been wishing I could go to the temple to receive revelation and be closer to Heavenly Father but then I thought of this quote and I thought that if I study a segment of the scriptures and get into the habit of making the scriptures a bigger part of my life it will give me greater faith to receive the revelation I need in order to follow what the Lord has planned for me.

Side note: Remember in the Doctrine and Covenants when Heavenly Father chastises the church for not using the scriptures more and so in return they weren’t ready for more information? I guess that’s kind of like that, I need to better utilize the tools I have before I receive more in the temple.

This week I have decided to study Mosiah 2, because I like King Benjamin, he tells me how to be happy. Would you like to know some of my findings so far? If you want, you can read the chapter too and post your treasures as a comment, but if you don’t want to I understand because some of my jewels of revelation can be too personal for me to share. I’m really excited for my little “project”- it’s like a journey through the scriptures, to know the doctrine and stories better for my profit and learning.

In vs. 9 it says “I have not commanded you to come up hither to trifle with the words which I shall speak, but that you should hearken unto me…” After reading that, I thought how simple that is and how I have looked over that in the past, but when I have thought about that phrase I remembered all the general conferences and stake conferences that I went to be spiritually edified and I learned great things but then I didn’t apply them, or maybe I didn’t listen with the spirit as much as I should have. Mosiah 2 is where King Benjamin calls his people for a stake conference to give him his last words of counsel.

Vs 14 I have always read that and thought “Cool! The king has labored along with his people” but if you look at how the sentence is phrase it continues to show the reasons and benefits of King Benjamin’s actions: “that (1) I might serve you, and (2) that ye should not be laden with taxes, and (3) that there should nothing come upon you which was grievous to be borne”-which makes sense because if you’re the king and working beside you people, you’re not going to make them do something that you would not be able to do yourself. King Benjamin was a smart man.

In vs 17 (scripture mastery) the word wisdom reminded me of a couple of weeks ago when Brian and I were having scripture study with the kids and we read this verse. He related finding wisdom to the Super Mario Galaxy video game that they had been playing: In the game you have to find all 5 pieces of the star to pass the level, SO Brian told the kids that finding wisdom is like finding the pieces of the star all throughout the scriptures. It was really cool and so I wanted to mark it in my scriptures so I knew that was a piece of wisdom.

In Vs 34 it says to “render to him all that you have and are”. He says this after he goes through the explanation that we will always be indebted to our Heavenly Father, but we need to give him all of ourselves because it is the only thing that we can give.

There’s more but I’ll skip to the last vs 41. I’ve always liked this verse, which is the reason why I chose this chapter to start with. It’s so clear and simple of how we can be happy. Obey the commandments and you will blessed, hold faithful to the end and you will be received in heaven- It’s never ending happiness.

Now here comes the Reading Rainbow challenge….But don’t take my word for it…Budum bum!

Brian has a cd of “God songs” that the kids like to listen to along with the primary cds and it has a song that’s been going through my mind all day, it goes like this:

I’ll cast all my cares upon you.

I’ll lay all of my burdens down at your feet

Any time I don’t know what to do

I will cast all my cares upon you.

I firmly believe that in this difficult decision time in my life that if I cast all my cares upon the Lord that He will straighten them out and help me know what it is he has in store for me in my life. I know this to be true, now I’m just taking that leap of faith to do my part so I can hear His voice more clearly.